Standards for low-Global Warming Potential:

prospects and challenges

ASHRAE Update:
Standard 15 and 34 for Refrigerants

Prof. Bjarne W. Olesen

ASHRAE President Elect 2016-17
Technical University of Denmark
ASHRAE a global society for Building Technology
– ASHRAE, founded in 1894, is a global society advancing human well-being
through sustainable technology for the built environment.

– The Society and its members focus on building systems, energy efficiency,
indoor environmental quality, refrigeration and sustainability within the
industry
ASHRAE a global society for Building Technology
– Founded in 1894
• 56,000+ volunteer members in 130 countries
–4,700+ student members
– ~11,000 members outside North-America
–14 regions
–181 chapters
–230+ student branches
What Makes Us Different
• A global membership
• Members create our built environment technologies
• Largest publishing program in field
• One of few HVAC&R organizations in world with own research program
ASHRAE Research
• $150 million, in todays money,
since 1959
• This year we will invest $5.8
million, an ASHRAE record
Global Outreach
• ASHRAE Associate Society Alliance with more than 70 members
• Indoor Environmental Quality - Global Alliance
• Memorandums of Understanding and partnerships with associations
and governments worldwide
 Considerations by stadardization

• Maintaining refrigerant choice

• Best refrigerant for each application
• Evaluating refrigerant characteristics for informed choices
• Balancing efficiency, cost, availability, safety
• Making transition predictable, smooth, informed
• Educating policy makers and training technicians
ASHRAE/ANSI STANDARDS
• Follow ANSI rules
• Balanced project committee
• Continuous maintenance (Addenda)
• Republished every 3rd year
 ASHRAE Standard 15 –
Safety Standard for Refrigeration Systems

HISTORY

• Efforts to establish a safety code date back to 1914 when an

American Society of Refrigerating Engineers (ASRE) committee
working with fire department officials in New York City proposed
regulations for refrigerating plants in the city.

• The regulation became law in 1915.

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ASHRAE Standard 15 –
Safety Standard for Refrigeration Systems
PURPOSE
• This standard specifies safe design, construction, installation, and operation of refrigeration
systems.
SCOPE
• This standard establishes safeguards for life, limb, health, and property and prescribes safety
requirements.
• This standard applies
(a) to the design, construction, test, installation, operation, and inspection of mechanical and
absorption refrigeration systems, including heat pump systems used in stationary
applications,
(b) to modifications including replacement of parts or components if they are not identical in
function and capacity, and
(c) to substitutions of refrigerant having a different designation 10
Refrigerant Safety
• ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 15-2013, Safety Standard for
Refrigeration Systems
• Establishes rules for safe application in equipment and
systems when using the refrigerant classification system
• 2013 version includes clarification of the location
requirements for machinery room mechanical ventilation.
• Standard 15-2016/17
• Incorporation of requirements for Class 2L refrigerants
• Complete rewrite of the standard in normative language
ASHRAE Standard 34 –
Designation and Safety Classification of Refrigerants
HISTORY

• First published as Standard 34 in 1978

• Superseded ANSI Standard B79.1-1968

• Now updated continuously, using a revision process

known as continuous maintenance

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ASHRAE Standard 34 –
Designation and Safety Classification of Refrigerants
PURPOSE

• This standard is intended to establish a simple means of referring to common

refrigerants instead of using the chemical name, formula, or trade name.

• It also establishes a uniform system for assigning reference numbers and safety
classifications to refrigerants.

• The standard identifies requirements to apply for designations and safety

classifications for refrigerants, including blends, and to determine refrigerant
concentration limits.

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ASHRAE Standard 34 –
Designation and Safety Classification of Refrigerants

SCOPE

• This standard provides an unambiguous system for numbering refrigerants and

assigning composition-designating prefixes for refrigerants. Safety
classifications based on toxicity and flammability data are included.

• This standard does not imply endorsement or concurrence that individual

refrigerant blends are suitable for any particular application.

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ASHRAE Standard 34 –
Designation and Safety Classification of Refrigerants
• Nomenclature of refrigerants and assigns safety classifications based on toxicity and
flammability data
• First published in 1957
• 2013 version includes assignment of designations and safety classifications for one new
single compound refrigerant and 14 new refrigerant blends
• Reviewing, classification and naming of refrigerants – 24 total
• Refinements through information developed via ASHRAE research

ASHRAE Standard 34 -2016/17

• The committee is working on creating an addendum to make 2L a class and not a
subclass.
Research Project
• RP1717- Improve Accuracy and Reproducibility of ASTM-E681 Test
Method for Flammability Limit Measurements of 2L Flammable
Refrigerants
Flammable Refrigerant Research
• Global effort to reduce high global
warming refrigerants
• $5.2 million initiative by ASHRAE, AHRI
and U.S. Department of Energy
Results will be used in Standards 15 and
34
ASHRAE Research
• $5.2 million towards flammable refrigerants
• DOE - $3 million
• ASHRAE - $1.2 million
• AHRI - $1 million
ASHRAE Research
• Good news on 2L refrigerants • Bad news!
• Much lower Global Warming • Mildly flammable (weak and
Potential unstable flames)
• Less impact on our environment • Standard and Code revisions are
• Excellent performance necessary
characteristics
ASHRAE-EN-ISO
ASHRAE-EN-ISO

• ISO 817-2014: Refrigerants — Designation and safety classification

• Harmonization of ASHRAE 34 and ISO 817 is ongoing
• ISO 5149-2014: Refrigerating systems and heat pumps — Safety and
environmental requirements.
1. Definitions, classification and selection criteria
2. Design, construction, testing, marking and documentation
3. Installation site
4. Operation, maintenance, repair and recovery
 ASHRAE and UNEP Cooperation

• ASHRAE and the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP),

represented by the Division of Technology, Industry & Economics
(DTIE), signed a Memorandum of Understanding in 2007.

• Establish technical co-operation and mutual coordination towards

providing professional technical services to the refrigeration and
air-conditioning stakeholders (governmental, private and public).
ASHRAE and UNEP Cooperation
• Work to ensure that up-to-date related technical information and
standards are properly introduced and promoted.
• Progress made through biennial work plans, with most recent
approved in January 2015
• Two main goals
• Address emissions reduction, long-term refrigerants and
energy efficiency
• Promote expertise and technological information exchange
among governments and specialists dealing with ASHRAE and
UNEP.
• Preparation of a new work plan in progress